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GRW3
Jan-29-2011, 9:33pm
Last night I went to a guitar workshop sponsored by Flatpicking Guitar magazine. I like workshops as I don't really have the time to pursue a steady lesson course. So every so often I go to a workshop. I go to mandolin workshops when I can but I play enough guitar to warrant guitar workshops too.

Dan Miller, the magazine editor, brought super guitarists Brad Davis and Tim May with him. You never know what a workshop will be like but they had an interesting approach. They asked everybody about their interests and based on common interest they decided that right hand technique would be a good place to start.

It worked out great for me because right hand technique issues are important for guitar and mandolin both. For the first hour we had discussions and demonstrations on right hand techniques. In the second hour we did practical assessments with the instructors evaluating our techniques. That was a good as it's great to get some individual attention.

After workshop there was a house concert. Dan played bass for the session, with Brad playing mostly guitar and Tim adding reso guitar and banjo to the mix. Both of them played a couple of tunes on mandolin. Interestingly, while they played the mando well, I could tell they were guitar players playing mandolin as opposed to mandolin players. The difference is subtle but it's one you come to recgonize. It's what I used to do (only at a higher skill level) before I took some mando specific courses. The pictures show them playing Brad's glossy Collings with the ear broke off the headstock.


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sgarrity
Jan-29-2011, 11:43pm
Tim and Dan are doing a workshop out here in about two weeks. I'm looking forward to it!

GRW3
Jan-30-2011, 1:02am
If there is a house concert involved be sure and take that in too. These guys put on a real show. They do a version of Nine Pound Hammer that takes the breaks into uncharted territory. I saw Tim do that same thing with noted banjo crazy man Gerald Jones at Camp Bluegrass last summer.

I suspect that with about the audience being workshop attendees they may have done more instrument related things than a straight up house concert. It was very cool to watch them put in practice the things they covered in class.

I've really come to appreciate house concerts. No drunks, no people trying to talk over the band. Usually there is a social break with snacks.

GDAE
Jan-30-2011, 12:10pm
I went to a workshop with these guys not long ago, as a very beginning guitar player...they broke us up into a couple of groups by ability, and the "beginners" room was great, really helpful...and the playing afterwards in the other room was amazing. Definitely worth going to.

Big Joe
Jan-30-2011, 3:54pm
Brad is nearly legendary and is a really cool guy. Tim is not as well known, but he is one of the best players of nearly all string instruments in nearly any genre you could hear. He has an INCREDIBLE collection of instruments as well. He is a great mandolin player and also plays mandola and mandocello. He's pretty good at guitar and banjo too :) . He is also an very nice guy and a joy to know.